3/13/2006

CAIRO (AFP) - A team of German archeologists has unearthed 17 statues of the lion-headed goddess Sekhmet during restoration work at an ancient temple in the southern city of Luxor, Culture Minister Faruq Hosni announced.

The team found the statues of the war goddess near the same site where six similar statues were unearthed last week, on the location of the 18th dynasty (1580-1314 BC) temple of pharaoh Amenhotep III on the west bank of the Nile, Hosni added in a statement received by AFP.The black granite statues were life-size, measure between 1.7 metres and 1.8 metres and show Sekhmet sitting on a throne holding the Ankh, a hieroglyphic sign that represented life for the ancient Egyptians, said Zahi Hawas, head of the Supreme Council of Antiquities.Hawas said there were inscriptions on either side of the seat indicating the various names of the pharaoh Amenhotep III.The team, he explained, was currently in the process of raising the statues, which were found in three metre-deep holes and measuring eight metres in diameter, for restoration.Last week, Egyptian and German archeologists found six statues for Sekhmet near the courtyard of the same temple.The goddess Sekhmet was associated with war and retribution and represented the destructive force of the sun. Part of her destructive side was disease and plague, but she could also cure ailments.Pharaoh Amenhotep III collected many statues of Sekhmet as, according to some theories, he had dental and other health problems that he hoped the goddess would be able to cure."